1 Samuel 6:20
New International Version
And the people of Beth Shemesh asked, “Who can stand in the presence of the LORD, this holy God? To whom will the ark go up from here?”

New Living Translation
“Who is able to stand in the presence of the LORD, this holy God?” they cried out. “Where can we send the Ark from here?”

English Standard Version
Then the men of Beth-shemesh said, “Who is able to stand before the LORD, this holy God? And to whom shall he go up away from us?”

Berean Standard Bible
The men of Beth-shemesh asked, “Who can stand in the presence of the LORD, this holy God? To whom should the ark go up from here?”

King James Bible
And the men of Bethshemesh said, Who is able to stand before this holy LORD God? and to whom shall he go up from us?

New King James Version
And the men of Beth Shemesh said, “Who is able to stand before this holy LORD God? And to whom shall it go up from us?”

New American Standard Bible
And the men of Beth-shemesh said, “Who is able to stand before the LORD, this holy God? And to whom will He go up from us?”

NASB 1995
The men of Beth-shemesh said, “Who is able to stand before the LORD, this holy God? And to whom shall He go up from us?”

NASB 1977
And the men of Beth-shemesh said, “Who is able to stand before the LORD, this holy God? And to whom shall He go up from us?”

Legacy Standard Bible
And the men of Beth-shemesh said, “Who is able to stand before Yahweh, this holy God? And to whom shall He go up from us?”

Amplified Bible
The men of Beth-shemesh said, “Who is able to stand before the LORD, this holy God? And to whom shall He go up from us?”

Christian Standard Bible
The people of Beth-shemesh asked, “Who is able to stand in the presence of the LORD this holy God? To whom should the ark go from here? ”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
The men of Beth-shemesh asked, “Who is able to stand in the presence of this holy LORD God? Who should the ark go to from here?”

American Standard Version
And the men of Beth-shemesh said, Who is able to stand before Jehovah, this holy God? and to whom shall he go up from us?

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And the men of Bayth Shemesh said: “Who can stand before this Holy LORD JEHOVAH God, and who will take the Ark up from us?”

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And the men of Baethsamys said, Who shall be able to pass before this holy Lord God? and to whom shall the ark of the Lord go up from us?

Contemporary English Version
and they started saying, "No other God is like the LORD! Who can go near him and stay alive? We'll have to send the chest away from here. But where can we send it?"

Douay-Rheims Bible
And the men of Bethsames said: Who shall be able to stand before the Lord this holy God? and to whom shall he go up from us?

English Revised Version
And the men of Beth-shemesh said, Who is able to stand before the LORD, this holy God? and to whom shall he go up from us?

GOD'S WORD® Translation
The people of Beth Shemesh asked, "Who can stand before the LORD, this holy God? And to which people will he go when he leaves us?"

Good News Translation
So the men of Beth Shemesh said, "Who can stand before the LORD, this holy God? Where can we send him to get him away from us?"

International Standard Version
The men of Beth-shemesh asked themselves, "Who can stand in the presence of the LORD, this holy God? And to whom will the Ark go from here?"

JPS Tanakh 1917
And the men of Beth-shemesh said: 'Who is able to stand before the LORD, this holy God? and to whom shall it go up from us?'

Literal Standard Version
And the men of Beth-Shemesh say, “Who is able to stand before YHWH, this holy God? And to whom does He go up from us?”

Majority Standard Bible
The men of Beth-shemesh asked, “Who can stand in the presence of the LORD, this holy God? To whom should the ark go up from here?”

New American Bible
The men of Beth-shemesh asked, “Who can stand in the presence of the LORD, this Holy God? To whom can the ark go so that we are rid of it?”

NET Bible
The residents of Beth Shemesh asked, "Who is able to stand before the LORD, this holy God? To whom will the ark go up from here?"

New Revised Standard Version
Then the people of Beth-shemesh said, “Who is able to stand before the LORD, this holy God? To whom shall he go so that we may be rid of him?”

New Heart English Bible
And the men of Beth Shemesh said, "Who is able to stand before this holy thing? And to whom should he go up from here?"

Webster's Bible Translation
And the men of Beth-shemesh said, Who is able to stand before this holy LORD God? and to whom shall he go up from us?

World English Bible
The men of Beth Shemesh said, “Who is able to stand before Yahweh, this holy God? To whom shall he go up from us?”

Young's Literal Translation
And the men of Beth-Shemesh say, 'Who is able to stand before Jehovah, this holy God? and unto whom doth He go up from us?'

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Ark Returned to Israel
19But God struck down some of the people of Beth-shemesh because they looked inside the ark of the LORD. He struck down seventy men, and the people mourned because the LORD had struck them with a great slaughter. 20The men of Beth-shemesh asked, “Who can stand in the presence of the LORD, this holy God? To whom should the ark go up from here?” 21So they sent messengers to the people of Kiriath-jearim, saying, “The Philistines have returned the ark of the LORD. Come down and take it up with you.”…

Cross References
Revelation 6:17
For the great day of Their wrath has come, and who is able to withstand it?"

Leviticus 11:44
For I am the LORD your God; consecrate yourselves, therefore, and be holy, because I am holy. You must not defile yourselves by any creature that crawls along the ground.

Leviticus 11:45
For I am the LORD, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt so that I would be your God; therefore be holy, because I am holy.

2 Samuel 6:9
That day David feared the LORD and asked, "How can the ark of the LORD ever come to me?"

Malachi 3:2
But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He will be like a refiner's fire, like a launderer's soap.


Treasury of Scripture

And the men of Bethshemesh said, Who is able to stand before this holy LORD God? and to whom shall he go up from us?

1 Samuel 5:8-12
They sent therefore and gathered all the lords of the Philistines unto them, and said, What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel? And they answered, Let the ark of the God of Israel be carried about unto Gath. And they carried the ark of the God of Israel about thither

Numbers 17:12,13
And the children of Israel spake unto Moses, saying, Behold, we die, we perish, we all perish…

2 Samuel 6:7,9
And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Uzzah; and God smote him there for his error; and there he died by the ark of God…

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1 Samuel 6
1. After seven months the Philistines take counsel how to send back the ark
10. They bring it on a new cart with an offering unto Beth Shemesh
19. The people are smitten for looking into the ark
21. They send to them of Kiriath Jearim to fetch it














(20) Who is able to stand?--There is some superstition involved in this exclamation, "Whither shall we send this awful visitant?" The men of the priestly city of Beth-shemesh strangely connected their invisible King with that golden Ark, which, sacred though it was, was but a lifeless chest of wood and gold.

Yet through their superstition we can discern a deep consciousness of sin and shortcoming, which argued well for the future reformation of the religious life of the people--a grand work, which we shall soon sec Samuel the prophet labouring so faithfully and so successfully to bring about. These poor sinners, discerning the cause of the fatal stroke which had fallen upon their brethren, felt too surely that they were none of them any better really than those who had fallen victims to their impiety, and were fully sensible that sinners could not dwell in the presence of God. Carried away by this feeling of awe before the purity of the invisible King, they cried, "To whom shall He go up from us?"

These poor Hebrews felt the same fear as John was sensible of centuries later, when at the feet of the glorified Son of Man he fell as dead; but they, less blessed than John and the children of the kingdom, had no Redeemer there to raise them up with the loving whisper: "Fear not; I (whom thou dreadest) am He that liveth and was dead." (Sec Revelation 1:17-18.)

Verses 20, 21. - Who is able, etc. Literally, "Who is able to stand before Jehovah, this holy God?" A punishment so severe following upon their unhallowed temerity made the inhabitants of this city of priests eager to pass the ark on to others. They therefore sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kirjath-jearim to request them to fetch it away. Kiryath-yarim - for so it ought to be pronounced - means the city of forests - Woodtown, softened among us into Wooton. It was chosen apparently simply because it was the nearest town of any importance, and was therefore identified in early Christian times with the modern Kuriet-el-'anab, grapetown, the woods having given way to vines, and which is about ten miles off, on the road to Mizpah. Conder, however, doubts the correctness of this view, and places Kirjath-jearim at Soba (see 'Tent Work,' 1:18 22).



Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
The men
אַנְשֵׁ֣י (’an·šê)
Noun - masculine plural construct
Strong's 376: A man as an individual, a male person

of Beth-shemesh
שֶׁ֔מֶשׁ (še·meš)
Noun - proper - feminine singular
Strong's 1053: Beth-shemesh -- 'sun temple', three places in Palestine, also a place in Egypt

asked,
וַיֹּֽאמְרוּ֙ (way·yō·mə·rū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 559: To utter, say

“Who
מִ֚י (mî)
Interrogative
Strong's 4310: Who?, whoever, in oblique construction with prefix, suffix

can
יוּכַ֣ל (yū·ḵal)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 3201: To be able, have power

stand
לַעֲמֹ֔ד (la·‘ă·mōḏ)
Preposition-l | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct
Strong's 5975: To stand, in various relations

in the presence
לִפְנֵ֨י (lip̄·nê)
Preposition-l | Noun - common plural construct
Strong's 6440: The face

of the LORD,
יְהוָ֧ה (Yah·weh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3068: LORD -- the proper name of the God of Israel

this
הַזֶּ֑ה (haz·zeh)
Article | Pronoun - masculine singular
Strong's 2088: This, that

holy
הַקָּד֖וֹשׁ (haq·qā·ḏō·wōš)
Article | Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 6918: Sacred, God, an angel, a saint, a sanctuary

God?
הָאֱלֹהִ֛ים (hā·’ĕ·lō·hîm)
Article | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 430: gods -- the supreme God, magistrates, a superlative

To
וְאֶל־ (wə·’el-)
Conjunctive waw | Preposition
Strong's 413: Near, with, among, to

whom
מִ֖י (mî)
Interrogative
Strong's 4310: Who?, whoever, in oblique construction with prefix, suffix

should the ark go up
יַעֲלֶ֥ה (ya·‘ă·leh)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 5927: To ascend, in, actively

from here?”
מֵעָלֵֽינוּ׃ (mê·‘ā·lê·nū)
Preposition-m | first person common plural
Strong's 5921: Above, over, upon, against


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OT History: 1 Samuel 6:20 The men of Beth Shemesh said Who (1Sa iSam 1 Sam i sa)
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